1832.] 



THE AMERICAN GARDEN. 



149 



THE JAMES VICE STRAWBERRY. 



It is some time since Rochester has en- 

 joyed a sensation in the line of new fruits. 

 This is owing, in part, to the fact that the 

 renowned authorities residing here decline 

 to get enthusiastic unless the occasion is 

 peculiarly enticing. Be that as it may, we 

 have had a sensation in the new strawberry 

 "James Vick," which made the greatest 

 display, as regards quantity and beauty, of 

 any strawberry I have seen, and in quality, 

 size, and firmness, is desirable. Many fine 

 fruits have been sent out from Rochester. 

 Monroe County is the home of numerous 

 seedlings that have made a wide reputation. 

 The Sharpie ss Strawberry was scattered 

 broadcast by Ellwanger & Barry, much to 

 their credit. 



Now comes a new candidate, bowing and 

 smiling, and looking its sweetest, as you will 



attracts attention everywhere by its glossy 

 luxuriance. I will stop now before saying 

 more, for I know no man or berry is perfect ; 

 thus this must have a weak poirA I have, 

 however, been unable to discover it thus far. 



Chas. A. Green. 

 [Plants of this variety growing in our Ex- 

 perimental Garden show extraordinary vigor 

 of foliage and roots, enabling them, appar- 

 ently, to withstand sun and frost. — Ed.] 



DO BEES INJURE GRAPES? 



This mooted question is answered in the 

 negative by Dr. T. T. Robertson, who, in 

 proof of it, relates his experiments in the 

 Scientific American. The doctor placed at 

 the mouth of the hives bunches of several 

 varieties of thin-skinned Grapes, and for 

 days, although the bees were constantly 



THE CALIFORNIA GRAPE. 



Vitis Calif ornica seems to be just what the 

 phylloxera-stricken vintners all over the 

 world have been looking for. The vines 

 raised from seeds forwarded to the Govern- 

 ment of New Zealand are very favorably 

 spoken of, and, if they succeed as well else- 

 where, will prove a great boon. Dr. R. 

 Schomburgk, Director of the Botanic Gar- 

 den of Adelaide, says : 



" There is no doubt of the value of the Vitis 

 California for grafting stock, and its use is 

 recommended either by cuttings or seeds. 

 But the crowning virtue is not alone that it 

 is phylloxera-proof, but also that it makes a 

 palatable claret wine, so that it is worth cul- 

 tivation for the sake of its fruit. It is 

 believed that it will supply a great desidera- 

 tum in wine-making, and is destined in the 

 future to make the claret of California 



THE JAMES VICK STRAWBERRY. 



note in the engraving. But is it possible 

 that so many berries ever grew on one 

 Strawberry plant "? I confess it appears in- 

 credible, but the engraving shows only a 

 part of what one average plant produced, 

 and these plants were seen by our most 

 prominent pomologists. I could see no dif- 

 ference in the plants, one appearing as 

 heavily laden as another. I never saw such 

 a sight, and this was the verdict of many. 



While the James Vick cannot be ranked 

 among the largest varieties, the size aver- 

 ages large, as was remarked by Secretary 

 P. C. Reynolds — "Larger than Downing or 

 Miners, not so large as Sharpless." Mr. 

 Reynolds said it combined sprightliness with 

 sweetness in a happy manner, and was very 

 good. In color and form it is perfect, ripen- 

 ing evenly throughout, and its firmness will 

 make it desirable for shipping. The plant 



crowding over them, not a berry was in- 

 jured. He then punctured half of the berries 

 on each bunch, and instantly the bees went 

 to work on all so punctured, in a short time 

 sucking them dry. The remainder of the 

 berries were untouched, and remained so 

 until punctured by him, when they in turn 

 were attacked as promptly as the former. 



This experiment demonstrates that it is 

 necessary for the Grape to have been pre- 

 viously injured so as to allow exudation of 

 juice, otherwise the bee will not molest it. 

 According to Dr. Robertson, rot, splitting 

 of the Grape, injury by insects and birds, 

 are the causes that render Grapes liable to 

 attack by bees ; and when it is reflected that 

 the berries thus injured would decay, it will 

 be seen that the bee actually saves to us 

 what would otherwise be lost, by storing it 

 up as honey. 



famous. It produces tannin and tartaric 

 potash, has no striking aroma, is sufficiently 

 neutral, and has no disagreeable taste what- 

 ever." 



CURRANT-WORMS. 



It has been recommended to plant Black 

 Currants alternately with Red ones, as a pre- 

 ventive against Currant-worms. We hope 

 no reader of the American Garden will fol- 

 low such chimerical advice. We had a 

 whole row of six hundred feet in length, 

 parallel with several rows of Red Currants, 

 and could not perceive that those nearest 

 the black ones were less favored by the 

 worms than the others. True, the black 

 ones were not troubled; but if it had not 

 been for the timely and profuse application 

 of White Hellebore, the red currants would 

 have suffered severely. 



